Drowning in rejection letters and debt, or swimming in job offers? William
Langley asked the graduates of Durham how the job-hunting is going.

The degree is in the bag, the job applications are in the post. By custom, all those years of swotting are finally over and the nation’s newest graduates can start to think about the dazzling careers and dizzying pay cheques their efforts have surely earned them.

Only it isn’t like that any more. The grad-scape has altered dramatically and, perhaps, permanently. Debts, a tough economy and a gnawing scepticism about the value of academic qualifications mean university leavers face an unprecedentedly scary outlook. According to High Fliers, a market research company, an average of 73 graduates are competing for each job, with the number rising to around 150 in popular professions such as finance and retailing. The oil giant, BP, says it has received 7,000 applications for 244 graduate positions this year. A quarter of graduates say they have not received even a single interview offer.

Adding to the pressure on graduates is the growing insistence of employers on a first-class degree rather than the standard 2:1, with many employers citing concerns about “grade inflation”. The Office for National Statistics estimates that a third of recent graduates are in low-skilled jobs. Many others are only nominally employed, through internships or work-experience programmes. A startling 67 per cent are back home living with their parents, and of these more than half say they expect to remain there “for the foreseeable future”. If things are really this bad is there any point in trying? Or going to university at all?

For all the prevailing climate of woe, some things don’t change. Hard work, a good attitude and the right ideas can still take you a long way. “Doom and gloom gets all the headlines,” says James Uffindell, founder of the recruitment agency Bright Network, “but there is still a huge shortage of bright, employable graduates. The war for talent is back on. Major blue-chip employers and fast-growing start-ups are recruiting again.” To test which way the graduate winds are blowing, we spoke to a sample of 2011 leavers from Durham University. Virtually all agreed that the overall picture was bleak. Only a few claimed to have found the jobs they wanted, although others had found jobs they hadn’t expected, but nevertheless liked.

What came across clearly was that these young people were far from pessimistic. Several felt the harsh climate they’d encountered had toughened them up and been “character building” and nearly all believed they would reach their goals in the end.

‘After university I joined a 10-month graduate programme at a charity in Oxford. I wasn’t paid, but I was given accommodation and money towards travel and food. On balance, it was worthwhile. At a point when a lot of my friends were finding it difficult to find any kind of work, it kept things moving and opened up a few opportunities. You have to be practical these days. The job market isn’t looking rosy, students have got large debts and people don’t want to be forced to move back to their parents’ house. So, instead of waiting for that dream job, most are going for short-term security, whether that’s a less-than-perfect job, a graduate programme or further study. I’ve just started a master’s in environmental technology, which I hope will improve my earning potential. When you have a 30 to 40-grand weight around your neck, it makes your decision-making a lot more sober. There are still groups of idealists but, on balance, I think they’ve been reined in a bit.’

Charlotte Ayleward, 23, zoology

‘I want to work in theatre and films. You’ve got to be honest with yourself, and I think I’m a natural-born actress. There’s no security now anyway, so you might as well be bold and follow your dreams. I’ve supported myself any way I could. I’ve been a sandwich maker, and now I’m living back at home with my parents and working for my father who’s a dentist. I see it as a good way — after university and boarding school – to reconnect with my parents but I know a lot of my friends who’ve done the same thing have found it difficult. They feel they’re ready to live their own lives and run their own homes. But nobody judges you for it. I’ve got about £25,000 of debt and I don’t personally see myself buying a house or starting a family for many moons. We’ve got to a situation where almost everybody has to move back home for some period of time.’

Claire Reavey, 22, music

‘So far I’ve worked at a girls’ boarding school and a PR company at The Edinburgh Festival. Now I’m hoping to spend the winter as a ski chalet host. It’s been a hard year, in the sense that I haven’t worked out what I really want to do, but I can’t say it hasn’t been fun.'

Charlie Vey, 23, business, economics and geography

‘I’m currently working at a small start-up company that makes health drinks and living at home with my parents, but I’m not sure how long that’s going to last. It’s very convenient but they’re constantly there and want to know everything. On the other hand, London is very expensive. I’ll give it another year.’

Alicia Hockles, 23, sports science

‘Considering what’s happened to the economy in the past four years, it might have been easier to have missed university and applied for jobs straight after school. I really want to get into sports marketing. But, despite my sporty background and my 2:1 degree, this year’s been very tough. I’ve done various internships in London, including a stint on Boris Johnson’s re-election campaign, and applied for several jobs, but I’m yet to secure a permanent position. I’ve been told I’m a strong candidate and been shortlisted several times, but the competition among top graduates is now intense. You have to learn not to take it personally.’

Sam Hatfield, 22, geography

‘I went to France to teach English and sports at a school in Montpellier. That lasted until December, then I worked for a consultancy, producing energy reports on places like the Congo and Nigeria. Now I’m doing an internship with a charity called The Besom. I’m prepared to work for free for 12 months but after that I’d want to move into paid work. You accept it for so long, but once you’ve learnt enough to start contributing to the company then it’s unjustified [to be made] to work for nothing.’

Tessa Coates, 22, biological anthropology

‘I have an almost entirely pointless degree, which means I can’t get a real job, but I can identify and classify all the primates. I wanted to get into television or movies, so I managed to find work as a runner on a film set. It was horrible. What you run is cups of tea. You don’t need an interest in films, you just need an interest in tea. When it ended I did a few internships, and wrote pieces for a film website. It’s still very hard. At the moment I’m probably writing three job applications a day, but I feel I’ve grown up over the year.’

Lydia Stoker, 26, history of art and theology

‘I went to university late because I was ill with ME between the ages of 13 and 19. Now, I’m living in Edinburgh and working as an assistant in the antiques department of the auction house Lyon & Turnbull. I do get paid, but it’s not a vast amount and I’m permanently in overdraft. I’m much, much more aware of money than I was when I was a student. My parents were married and about to have a child at my age, but, like everyone, I’ve got large debts – about £20,000 – and I couldn’t possibly think about getting a mortgage or starting a family at the moment.’

Ed Brett, 23, physics

'I’m a triathlon fan and, after Durham, I decided to use some of my student grant and some money I’d made selling sports nutrition products to set up a fitness training camp in Portugal. I suppose I’ve been lucky. I knew what I wanted to do, and it’s worked out. I know it’s been tough for a lot of people, but if you just do your own thing and seize your opportunities you can be successful.’

Angus Pettifer, 23, maths

‘The best favour you can do yourself is to start making plans early. If you put things off, you’re going to be behind the game. I put in loads of applications before leaving university and now I’m working as an investment banker.’

Orlando Barley, 23, geography

‘Taking direct action wasn’t really my idea, but I didn’t have a job, and I couldn’t see one appearing. So my mum bought me a smart suit, and I stood on the street outside the Lloyds of London building, and handed out copies of my CV to anyone who looked as though they might be able to help. The response was unbelievably positive. I collected 22 business cards, got four interviews and three job offers, and now I’m working as a junior insurance broker in the City. It’s what I wanted to do, so I’m pretty happy and rather surprised. Doing it my way saved a lot of time. The alternative is to stay at home, writing letters to thousands of people, none of whom cares very much.’

David Head, 23, philosophy

‘I was involved in theatre at Durham and wrote a play called Suicide Letter Love Note — a kind of romcom with existentialist overtones. After I left, I managed to get it put on at a theatre in Islington, although, frankly, it didn’t do a lot of business. What I learnt was that putting on my own productions wasn’t financially viable, so I basically had to get a job. Now I have an internship at an advertising agency, and I’m hopeful there’ll be a job at the end of it. It’s tough, but it’s cheering to see that we live in a meritocracy and the rewards will come if you put the work in.’

Issy Ridley, 23, ancient history

‘While I was travelling in India, after university, I got a call from Burberry, asking me to come for an interview. Now I’m working in their merchandising department. It’s really good but in some ways I feel too young to say that this is absolutely what I want to do.’